This invention relates to a method of making roofing shingles. More particularly, this invention relates to a method of producing aesthetically pleasing roofing shingles.
The use of aesthetically pleasing roofing shingles is popular among consumers. Aesthetically pleasing roofing shingles are produced by varying the pattern of colors in the shingles as well as their length, and spacing between their tabs, cutouts, and notches. The appearance of shingles can be varied by placing colored granules in patterns at specified locations with respect to the patterns of cuts, such as length cuts and tab cuts, in the shingles. Color patterns which are misplaced at undesirable locations produce poor quality shingles. Thus, it would be desirable to produce a method of synchronizing the placement of the color patterns with respect to the tabs, cutouts, and notches in the shingles.
The above objects as well as other objects not specifically enumerated are achieved by a method of making shingles including coating a shingle mat with roofing asphalt to make an asphalt-coated sheet, and covering the asphalt-coated sheet with granules to form a granule-covered sheet along a longitudinal axis, the granule-covered sheet having a shadow patch thereon, the shadow patch having a first width along the longitudinal axis. The granule-covered sheet is divided into an overlay sheet and an underlay sheet, the shadow patch being on the underlay sheet. A pattern of tabs and cutouts is cut in the overlay sheet, one of the tabs of the pattern being a select tab having a second width along the longitudinal axis, the second width of the select tab being less than the first width of the shadow patches. The relative longitudinal positions of the shadow patch and the select tab are synchronized. The overlay sheet and the underlay sheet are laminated together, thereby covering a portion of the synchronizing shadow patch with the select tab to leave a remainder portion of the shadow patch uncovered by the select tab. Remainder portions of different widths are created on different shingles by varying the longitudinal positions of the select tab and the shadow patches with respect to each other.
According to this invention there is also provided method of making shingles, wherein the shingles include an overlay portion and an underlay portion. The method includes establishing a continuous overlay sheet having a pattern of tabs and cutouts, establishing a continuous underlay sheet having a series of shadow patches, sensing the position of the pattern of tabs and cutouts on the continuous shingle overlay sheet, sensing the position of the series of shadow patches on the continuous shingle underlay sheet, and synchronizing the position of the continuous overlay sheet with respect to the continuous underlay sheet in response to the sensed position of the pattern of tabs and cutouts and the sensed position of the series of shadow patches. The continuous overlay sheet and the continuous underlay sheet are laminated together. Remainder portions of different widths on different shingles are created by varying the positions of the continuous overlay sheet and the continuous underlay sheet with respect to each other.
According to this invention there is also provided a set of shingles having an appearance that varies from shingle to shingle, each of the shingles having an overlay sheet and an underlay sheet. Each overlay sheet has a plurality of tabs, at least one of the tabs being a select tab. Each underlay sheet has one or more shadow patches, at least one of the shadow patches of each shingle defining a remainder portion when the select tab covers a portion of the at least one shadow patches. The positions of the select tab and the shadow patches vary with respect to each other from shingle to shingle, thereby causing the appearance of the remainder portion to vary from shingle to shingle.
According to this invention there is also provided a set of shingles having an appearance that varies from shingle to shingle, where each shingle has a plurality of tabs, at least one of the tabs being a select tab. Each shingle has one or more shadow patches, at least one of the shadow patches of each shingle defining a remainder portion when the select tab covers a portion of the at least one shadow patches. The relative longitudinal positions of the select tab and at least one shadow patch vary with respect to each other from shingle to shingle, thereby causing the appearance of the remainder portion to vary from shingle to shingle.
Various objects and advantages of this invention will become apparent to those skilled in the art from the following detailed description of the preferred embodiment, when read in light of the accompanying drawings.